CULICIVORA '. tricapilla. 

 Black crowned Warhler. 



Family, Sylviadae. Sub-family, Sylviana. Nob. 

 (See North Zool. Vol. 2.) 



Generic Character. 



CuLicivoRA. Swains, in Zool. Journ. No. 11. ('1827 J Lesson Man. 

 2. p. 430. 



Bill very slender, the base depressed, the sides compressed, the 

 cuhnen arched from the base. Nostrils long ; aperture linear 

 and naked ; rictus bearded. Wings remarkably short. Tail 

 slender, graduated, and generally lengthened. 



Specific Character. 



Above cinereous, beneath white ; upper part of the head, middle 

 tail feathers, and base of the thrte outer feathers deep black. 

 Quills blackish, tvith tvhite and grey margins. 



Figuier a tete noir de Cayenne ? PL Enl. pL 704. y. 1. ? 



The birds composing this natural but intricate group, have 

 hitherto been found only in America. Scarcely superior in 

 size to the Gold-crested Wrens, they exhibit much of the 

 same activity and restlessness in searching after insects. 

 Vet their manners, in other respects, are more in unison 

 with those of the flycatching birds. 



In size and in structure, our bird perfectly accords with 

 the Sylvia caerulea of Vieil, and represents that northern 

 species in tropical America, but we are fearful of identify- 

 ing it with that figured in the PI. Enl. Our drawings are 

 of the natural size ; in both these species the bill perfectly 

 resembles that of Prima. Horsf. except in being some- 

 what shorter : the feet, however, are those of Setophagay 

 Swains. The Flycatchers and Warblers, are so blended 

 together, by all writers, that we have not yet been able to 

 discover the typical example of this group. Its true affini- 

 ties, however, appear to be as follows : — 



Culicivora is represented in Africa by Drymoica, Sw., in 

 India by Prinia, Horsf., and in Australia by Malurus, 

 Vieil. These genera, in conjunction with that of Sylvia, 

 seem to indicate the first typical circle of this family. 

 Culicivora exhibits many singular characters ; in some 

 approaching to Prinia, the tail is very short : others, 

 shewing an affinity to Sylvia, have yellow crests : while a 

 few species, leading to Setophaga, present us with the 

 depressed bill of a Flycatcher. 



